The Tomboy Master
by Dingo T. Wilds
Summary: Children are such excitable beings. This is especially true for those who first start their Pokemon Journey. Watch as a young girl starts into the world on her own, but her father harbors a dark past and present.
1. Chapter 1: Pikachu, I Choose You!

Pokemon is the Property of by Satoshi Tajiri

XxXxXxXx

We start our story in the little town of Pallet. Pallet town was a peaceful country town where the famous Professor Samuel Oak runs his Pokémon research laboratory, which sits on the expansive Pokémon reserve Oak Corral, where all the Pokémon from the trainers that he sponsors live and relax when their trainers are away. Prof. Oak was preparing for a very important event the next day when several young trainers would come, though the two he thought of the most fondly were his own grandson Gary Oak, and a spunky younger girl, Ashe.

He chuckled as he thought of when Gary first met Ashe. When the two of them had been children, Gary had tried to tease Ashe over the fact the Ashe was wearing a dress, and after being chased around the park while being hit with a stick, found out Ashe was a girl. Ashley J. Ketchum, though she prefers Ashe, Pallet town's biggest tomboy, had from then on declared his grandson her rival. As her mother, Delia, tried to apologize for her daughter's actions, he had laughed it off, saying that Gary had learned a valuable lesson that day.

Prof. Oak looked at a picture that he kept next to his work computer, and the three pokeballs next to it. Now that Ashe had out grown her mother's insistence to dress her, the girl tended to wander around in either blue jeans or knee length denim shorts, often with a simple tee shirt and a blue and white jacket she had found in her father's old chest in the attic, or an overly large Pikachu hoodie when it was cold. The poor girl thought her father was on his own journey to become a Pokémon Master, like her dream. If only Delia would tell her...

Oak shook himself, he had promised his student that he wouldn't tell Ashe the truth about her father, as long as Delia informed her before her daughter's journey started in a few days, as Delia wanted Ashe to grow up without feeling any sorrow or pain. Looking at the three pokeballs next to his hand, he remembered the tomboy's request. Since Pallet had four trainers starting out this year, despite her mother's insistince to wait until she was proper age, Ashe had asked him if he could find a different Pokémon for her to start with. It was hard for him to refuse the short haired girl, but he couldn't think of any Pokémon that she couldn't get in the nearby woods. As he went into the Pokeball Storage room to look over it once again, a pokeball with a lightning bolt etched into it caught his attention. Yes, that one could work.

XxXxXxXx Ketchum House Morning XxXxXxXx

Delia Ketchum was proud of her daughter. Today was the day that her little princess was leaving on her own Pokémon League Challenge, something that the girl had been looking forward to. Ashe had been ordering special items from across the world through Pen pals and some of Prof. Oak's colleagues, Such as Kurt the Pokeball Crafter and Prof. Birch of Hoenn. Delia had helped Ashe pack her backpack properly while making sure that she could access both her Pokeballs and medicines in case her Pokémon get hurt easily.

Looking at the clock, she went to wake up Ashe. Delia was pretty sure something had happened to the girl's alarm clock, again. Opening the door that had a nameplate shaped like a Snorlax, she took in the room. It seem that it was a boy's room, with the dirty clothes on the floor and tons of Pokémon merchandise, it still had a feminine feel as most of the Pokémon toys were Pokémon that were, such as Clefairy, popular with the younger female trainers, though two particular Pokémon dominated this room, Pikachu and Dratini. Ashe thought that Pikachu was a great Pokémon to have, but Delia thought it was because Lt. Surge had made a brief appearance at the lab a few years ago and Ashe had seen his Raichu's power. Dratini, although, was one of Ashe's favorites for a different reason, that reason being her not-so-secret-secret- crush on the Pokémon Champion Lance.

"Ashley Jane Ketchum! Wake up or you'll miss your Starter Pokémon selection!" Delia demanded, knowing that the girl would run out in her pajamas if she didn't block the door, "Get dressed, you have a half hour before they start, plenty of time.

Ashe watched as her mom walked out after she had nearly ran out the door in her Poliwag print pajamas. Changing into her usual shorts and tee shirt, Ashe slowly picked up her father's old jacket. Last night, her mother had told her a little about her father, and Ashe wasn't sure if she wanted to know anything else. When she was born, her mother had found out that her fiance was part of the Pokémon thief gang. Instead of turning him in, she told him to leave, not wanting his criminal activities to affect herself and Ashe. Looking at the jacket once again, Ashe slid it over her shoulders. She would look through the rest of what he left in the attic after she went to the lab.

Delia watched as Ashe quickly combed her hair in the hall mirror. Ashe's black hair was long enough to cover her ears, but with the way she dressed, everyone that didn't know her personally just thought of Ashe as a long haired boy. While this frustrated the single mother, it also caused some relief as the perverted sickos in the world would only see a boy with Pokémon, not her little girl.

As Ashe dashed out the door, a slight movement in the side yard caught Delia's attention. Looking out the window, she saw a tall handsome man in a rather expensive suit off in the distance, waiting by a car, while a Persian slowly crept up to her porch before depositing a small box with two notes attached to it before dashing back to the man. Running out of the house, Delia saw the man and Persian get into to the car, and drive off in the direction of Viridian City, opposite of the way her daughter had gone. Looking down at the box, she saw the first note was addressed to her, and the other to Ashley. Delia's hands began to shake as she slowly opened her note, only to let out a shuddering sigh. Why did he do this? What did her ex-fiancé have to gain from this package? She slowly walked into the house with the box, not knowing what to do next.

XxXxXxXx Highway to Viridian City XxXxXxXx

"Boss, what was the purpose of delivering that box? Why do it yourself, making sure that woman could see you could have been a mistake." The Blue haired man driving the limo said, glancing at the crime boss in the mirror.

"It is something of a personal matter to me," Was all the man said, before the red haired woman in the front passenger seat spoke up.

"Sir, she's not even an undercover operative, or a former member," The man glared at her through the mirror, causing her to quickly go over everything they saw. Her eyes softened a touch.

"Da kid that took off towards da lab is yours, isn't it?" A Meowth ask, popping over the back of the driver's head rest. The two humans kept their eyes on the road, not wanting to upset the boss.

"With today being the Starter Selection Day, she's either going to watch," the woman started.

"Or she's a prodigy to start her career early." the man finished, not taking his eyes off the road.

The man's hand tightened around the arm rest, "Jessie, James. When we return to Viridian, continue with what you where planning. When I summon you, be ready for a mission. James, stop the car."

James slowly eased the limo onto the shoulder while the boss looked at the Meowth.

"Meowth, follow my daughter, make sure she gets to Viridian safely. Help her if you think it's needed." Meowth nodded before jumping out of the car and vanishing into the woods, as they were still close enough to Pallet for Meowth to make good time. As James pulled back onto the road, the man's phone rang. He slowly and cautiously answered, fearing the reaction of the person on the other end.

"Giovanni... how could you do that to us?"

XxXxXxXx Back in Pallet, Oak's Lab XxXxXxXx

"Welcome, all four of you. Come in and stand around the pedestal in the center of the room." Prof. Oak gestured for the four children to enter his lab. Two of the new trainers looked around in awe, while Ashe and Gary had their eyes fixed on the Pokeballs. For some reason, Ashe's attention was drawn to the on in the center of the pedestal, where a fourth pokeball sat.

"Listen up children. Today is the day each of you waited and studied for, but first I have a special gift for Gary and Ashe." Oak looked directly at the two, "Gary, you are expected to one day take over my position, which you expressed several times when you were younger. Yet you also wish to follow your father's steps as well and become a 'hotshot' Trainer. Take this with you; add your own observations and notes about any Pokémon you see or catch. This is how I started, just like you."

Prof. Oak handed Gary a digital sketch book, a more modern version of what he used in his youth, but Gary was more technologically inclined than he himself was, despite the high tech equipment in the lab. Turning to Ashe, he continued.

"Ashley, you on the other hand wish to learn and master as much as you can about all Pokémon," Oak quickly passed out four Pokedexs to the children, though, Ashe's seemed, sleeker, more refined than the others, "My colleagues and I decided to let you test out the new Pokedex that we developed. It will update itself when accessing data on rare Pokémon from other regions, and knowing how creative you can be, will record every detail about your Pokémon, including new attacks you develop, any training, etc, etc. In accordance to the Pokémon League rules, most Trainers can only care for six Pokémon at a time, though do to you playing field tester for me and the other Professors, your status is both a Pokémon Trainer and a Professor's Field Assistant. What this means is that you can carry up to eight Pokémon with you at any time, though in any official match your can only use six Pokémon to battle."

Ashe stared at the elderly Professor in slight awe, knowing that accepting anyone at her age as an assistant was unheard of.

"Thank you, Professor." She said, bowing slightly.

"There's no need for that, just get me some interesting data. Now then," Oak said with a smile, "Time to choose your starters. Ladies first."

Gary snorted at that, causing his grandfather to send him a stern look. Ashe didn't hesitate, she reached for the Pokeball in the center of the others, the one marked with a lightning bolt.

"Come on out!"

As Ashe tossed the pokeball into the air, it opened up, releasing its resident.

"Pika-chu" the small yellow mouse said. Suddenly Ashe squealed and hugged it.

"ASHLEY WAIT!" Prof. Oak yelled.

XxXxXxXx

Pikachu had had a bad week. It had started when he had strayed too close to an Ekans' nest, and the snake had attacked him. Eventually Pikachu won but was weak and he had been hit with a Poison Sting attack, and since he had strayed far from his territory, he had no clue to where the berries that helped were.

Soon an elderly human stumbled upon the two, quickly capturing both of the wild Pokémon with those blasted capture balls that the humans made. While Pikachu was slightly delirious from the poison, he began to struggle, trying to get out. As his fear grew, so did his struggles.

When he was let out, he was immediately rushed into a white chamber that while bigger than the ball, was still small enough to make him freak-out more. When he noticed the room was healing him, he tried to calm down, but when the door opened, he was forced back into the ball.

Now that he had been let out, he stared at the human female, according to her scent, that had thrown his ball. Upon seeing a look on the human's face that it could equate to the females of his species fawning over the baby Pichu, he gave the Pikachu equivalent of 'Oh Shit' before she let out a, to him, ear piercing shriek and grabbed him up off the ground. Just as the old human yelled, Pikachu let off a Thundershock for surprising him.

XxXxXxXx

"I-TITI-TAI-TI-TAI-TAI-TAI!" Both Prof. Oak and Ashe were caught in the attack, causing the three others to stare, before Gary laughed at their slightly roasted forms.

"It seems Ashey-boy has a feminine side after all."

"Shut up Gary, and don't call me that!" Ashe yelled before turning to Prof. Oak, "Is there anything else, or can I leave? Mom wanted to get some pictures before I left."

"Go on, don't keep your mother waiting," Oak motioned towards the door. Ashe carefully positioned Pikachu on her shoulder and walked out, only to hear a 'SQUIRTLE!', a splash of water, and twin 'GAHS!' from inside. Ashe giggled as Pikachu laughed.

XxXxXxXx

Pikachu evaluated his 'trainer' as she walked down the road towards a human den. She hadn't had any more outbursts since he had shocked her, but kept an eye on her just in case. Either way, the girl hadn't proven herself to him, though not putting him in the ball was a step in the right direction. Until he was sure that she wouldn't hurt him, he would keep his distance, in a manner of speaking.

"Mom!" Ashe called, "I'm back! Mom?"

"Damn it! I just told her a little bit last night, why NOW!" Ashe heard her mom shout, looking into the Kitchen, she saw her mom yelling at the video phone, though the screen was turned off. Delia seemed to be listening to whoever was on the other end of the line before sighing.

"It's up to Ashley if she wants to see you or not. I'm not going to make her see you, and you certainly not going to force the meeting. Understand?"

Ashe notice the package on the table, with a note addressed to her on top of it. Opening the letter and reading through it, her eyes widened. Looking at her mother, Ashe suddenly knew what and who her conversation was about. As Delia hung up the phone, she saw Ashe reading the note. Delia quickly wrapped the girl in a hug as Pikachu sat on the table, poking at the package.

XxXxXxXx

Meowth had been trailing the 'Kid' as he had been calling Ashe since she got the special Pokedex. While very impressed that a child like her could impress so many eggheads, he looked her over with a closer eye. The girl was dressed in very boyish cloths, the shorts, shirt and ball cap alone gave that away, the shorts were tailored in a slight feminine fashion, her face was too well rounded to be a boy and her shortish-longish hair flared out slightly like some of the human girls did with their hair back at head quarters.

Chuckling to himself over her startling her new Pikachu, he decided to quickly split when one of the boys choose a Squirtle. Following her down the road, making sure to remind himself to walk on all fours, he followed her to her house. He heard a woman yelling, and upon further inspection, it was at the boss over the phone. Hopping up to the open window on the second story, Meowth idly noted that it was the girl's room. Pulling a small, easy to hide camera from under the collar he chose to wear in case he was discovered, he took a few snapshots of the photos on the desk of the girl and her mom, and what looked to be one of the boys from the lab and the Professor in one of them. He also took note of the abundance of Pikachu and Dratini dolls and other similar items in the room, and quickly slipped back down into the yard, listening to what the two were talking about.

XxXxXxXx

"Is this your Pikachu?" Delia asked, after they had both settled down. Ashe nodded with a light blush.

"He shocked me in the lab," she said gesturing to her slightly dirty cloths, "Prof. Oak also made me his assistant, meaning I can carry eight Pokémon and by showing my I.D. I can get into places that I could use to help test and complete my Pokedex, such as the archives of the Pewter City Museum, to see if I can scan the fossils for information on the Pokémon."

Ashe noticed that her mom had brought her father's chest down from the attic. As she stood up and pulled it over, her mom watched sadly. As she went through the chest, Ashe only pulled out an old photo album that she hadn't seen when she first found her jacket in it. Other than that it was mostly cloths and travel gear that her mom had gotten her newer ones of as a birthday present.

"Mom... can I take this?" Ashe asked, placing the rather small album on the table. Delia nodded, but took note when Ashe merely slipped it into her backpack instead of opening it. Ashe then reached for the box on the table when her mother stopped her, looking up Ashe saw her mother's worried expression.

"I'm going to open it, in my note, he said I could keep what was in it if I wanted it, and gave me the location to meet with him if I want."

"Do you?" Delia asked, not sure how she should be reacting to the situation. No matter how much she had threatened Giovanni over the phone, he seemed more anxious just to meet his only child, and readily agreed with everything she had threatened him into.

"I don't know." Ashe whispered. picking up the box and peeling off the tape, Ashe took a deep breathe, and opened it. Inside the box was a small device, about half the size of a Pokedex, a pokeball, a dark green suit that looked similar to that a circus ring leader would wear, and a note. laying the note on the table so her mother could see it too, Ashe began to read.

''Ashley,

If you are reading this, then you have decided to at least look at what I sent. I have a lot to make up for, though I fear I will never be able to. Everything that is in this box, I got it the proper way, with money that I had set aside from my days as a Trainer, and searching for the Pokemon in the wild.

The PokeGear is simple, though it is not yet activated, opened, or anything. I will not know the number unless you let me know. The outfit is similar to your late grandfather's show costume from his days as a Pokemon Coordinator, though I don't know if you'll be entering any contests. As for the Pokeball, it contains a young Abra. I wanted you to have it so you can always escape from danger if you find yourself in any.

You can do as you wish with these gifts, it is up to you.

-Giovanni."

"Mom, in both of my notes, he states his name instead of writing father or dad. Maybe..." Ashe stopped when her mother turned away.

"Ashley, honey. I'm... sorry, I'm not ready to forgive him yet. He's done a lot of bad stuff, and he still is doing so. When I told him that I wasn't going to force you to do anything that concerns him, same goes for this. You choose what to do. Just, please, don't let him talk you into joining his band of thieves and criminals." Delia hugged herself, slowly walking out into the living room to calm herself. Ashe looked at the gifts, and slowly packed them away, clipping Abra's pokeball to her belt next to Pikachu's.

When Delia had calmed down enough to take some pictures and say good bye, Ashe left the house and turned to Pikachu.

"Well little Buddy, it's time for use to start our journey." Suddenly Pikachu stopped walking and plopped down in the middle of the road, refusing to budge, "Don't make me drag you, because I will!"

XxXxXxXx

"I can't believe I'm doing this." Ashe said as she tugged on the rope that she had tied around Pikachu's middle. The little mouse was grabbing at every bush, rock, and tree root sticking up out of the ground making it difficult to pull him along. It was embarrassing that she was pulling him along in the first place, and Pikachu couldn't shock her with her wearing a pair of old rubber gloves that her mom gave her.

Giving up on trying to pull him off of this particular tree, Ashe sat down.

"Fine then. We'll stop here for lunch before we continue. I want to get to Viridian City tonight." Ashe untied Pikachu, who ran up the tree and started eating some of the berries on it's branches, "Hmph, be that way. Abra, come on out!"

"Raaa..." Abra yawned, stretching itself out slightly before plopping down at the base of the tree Pikachu was in. Ashe decided to check out her Pokedex's functions.

_"Abra, The Psi Pokemon. It hypnotizes itself so that it can teleport away when it senses danger, even if it is asleep. This specimen is Male, PokeAbility: Inner Focus. This specimen knows Teleport and was taught Teleknises With a TM."_

Ashe looked at the Abra, who was watching her intently. Pulling out some fruit for herself to snack on, she held out a small branch out grapes for Abra, hoping he would take them. Abra happily took the food and teleported to her side in order to get them.

"What about you Pikachu?" Ashe wondered, allowing the Pokedex to scan the electric mouse.

_"Pikachu, The Mouse Pokemon. It raises its tail to check its surroundings. The tail is sometimes struck by lightning in this pose. This specimen is a male. PokeAbility: Static. This specimen knows Thundershock, Quick Attack, and Thunderbolt. Note: This specimen has acute Claustrophobia, recommended to only return it to the pokeball in life threatening situations."_

Ashe looked up at Pikachu, only to see him laying on his side picking his nose. Ashe could feel the metaphorical sweat drop. Sighing, she turned back to her food when a noise caught her attention. Looking up she saw a small bird Pokemon with red wings glaring at her, and for such a small bird it was working. Quickly and subtly moving her Pokedex in to a good position, Ashe scanned the bird.

_"Spearow, the Tiny Bird Pokemon. __Spearow has a very loud cry that can be heard over half a mile away. If its high, keening cry is heard echoing all around, it is a sign that they are warning each other of danger. This is a very temperamental Pokemon that will attack any perceived intruders within it's territory."_

Ashe quickly looked at the Spearow as it took off, aiming straight for Abra, who had fallen asleep. As Ashe jumped out to try and block the bird Pokemon's attack, Abra suddenly teleported both of them to the left, forcing Spearow to make another pass.

"Abra, use Telekinesis to slow that Spearow down!"

Abra woke up at Ashe's command, using it's Psychic power to stop the Spearow from dive bombing Pikachu. The little yellow Pokemon looked at his trainer in surprise, but wasted no time in zapping the bird.

"SPEAR-ROOOW!" the little bird cried out in pain. Ashe acted fast as Abra released his telekinetic hold over the bird and threw a pokeball.

'Hopefully the little guy will forgive me later,' Ashe thought as the pokeball shook once before holding still.

"Hehe, Alright! I caught," Ashe cried, holding up the pokeball, "A Spearow!"

"PIKA!"

"ABRA!"

"SPEAROW!"

Ashe blinked, looking at the pokeball in her hand. Realizing that it wasn't her new Pokemon, she slowly turned around. Off to her left in a tree in the center of the field was a flock of Spearow. An angry flock of Spearow. As the flock suddenly took off, Ashe recalled Abra back into his ball and grabbed up her backpack from the ground, and taking off down the path with Pikachu at her heels.

"Don't worry Pikachu, if we keep running, they'll stop before they leave their territory!"

Pikachu didn't look to sure about what Ashe had said, as the Spearow at their heels were screaming vengeance for their captured brethren. That was all the motivation he needed to speed up, passing Ashe. Only a few seconds after he did so, the Spearow decided that he was the prime target because the human girl would be defenseless without him. Pikachu cried in pain as the flock descended on him.

Ashe watched in horror as the Spearow descended on Pikachu, knocking him to the ground and attacking him. Without thinking of the consequences, Ashe dove to the ground, scooping Pikachu up, and rolled to her feet and kept running. Looking at her starter, Ashe's eyes teared up as Pikachu winced in pain. She kept running until she came to a cliff.

'Crap, What am I going to do now?' Ashe thought when she heard the sound of a pokeball releasing it's occupant. Feeling a clawed hand grasp her shorts, Ashe looked down to see Abra had left his Pokeball, and was standing next to her.

"Aaaaa-Braaaa!"

Ashe felt as if the world closed in around her, squeezing her like she was in a pipe when she suddenly appeared next to a girl fishing.

"AHH!" the girl screamed, jumping into the air, before noticing Pikachu's injuries and the exhausted Abra at the Ashe's feet.

"What's going on, are you okay?" the girl asked, as Ashe knelt down to prop Abra up. Suddenly the flock of Spearow appeared over the edge of the cliff Ashe had just been standing on, screeching as they dove towards the two girls.

"Run!" Ashe yelled as she tried to pick up both Abra and Pikachu. As lighting flashed through the air, the flock by passed the other girl completely continuing to chase Ashe.

"Look out!" the orange haired girl yelled, Ashe tripped over a protruding tree root that caused her to let go of Abra and Pikachu, sending all three of them tumbling to the ground.

"No," Ashe whispered as she stood up, "I won't let you hurt them!"

Ashe stood in the path of the dive-bombing Spearow, lightning Flashing in the sky. With a piercing shriek they dove at the short haired girl who stood between them and their prey. As they closed in, two cries tore through the storm

"BRAAA!"

"Pikaaaa-CHUUUUU!"

XxXxXxXx

Author's Note: Written on a random whim while snaking on chips and watch the original series. Ashe's team will remain the same as in the series except for Abra and one of the following: Machop, Scyther, Dratini, or Teddiursa. The one with the most votes by the time I post ch.3 will be included in the fic.


	2. Chapter 2: Pokemon Emergency!

Pokemon is the Property of by Satoshi Tajiri

XxXxXxXx

Last time, In The Tomboy Master:

XxXxXxXx

_Ashe stood in the path of the dive-bombing Spearow, lightning Flashing in the sky. With a piercing shriek they dove at the short haired girl who stood between them and their prey. As they closed in, two cries tore through the storm_

"_BRAAA!"_

"_Pikaaaa-CHUUUUU!"_

XxXxXxXx

"BRAAA!"

Ashe watched in awe as Abra froze the flock of Spearow in the air, trying to protect her. He wasn't able to hold it for long, as the Spearow shook it off and came around for another attack when Pikachu threw himself in the air between her and the flock.

"Pikaaaa-CHUUUUU!"

A bolt of lightning ripped through the air, connecting with Pikachu who rerouted it towards the Spearow.

"No way," Ashe watched as she picked up Abra, who was tired from his attempt to stop them. As the red haired girl from before started screaming something about her bike, Ashe raced forward to catch Pikachu as well. She collapsed under the combined weight of both Pokemon and the impact of Pikachu's fall, and was staring at the sky.

A large bird like Pokemon flew overhead, cresting the rainbow that had formed when the clouds had broken after the storm.

"What's that?" Ashe whispered as her Pokedex scanned the beautiful Pokemon.

"_Body image matches that of the Johto Legend Ho-Oh, and it is said that it will reveal itself before a pure-hearted trainer by shining its bright rainbow-colored wings. You are most lucky indeed."_

"Your not a normal A.I. are you, Dexter?" Ashe asked as the Pokedex, though it merely closed itself, ignoring her.

"Okay, lets get going you two." Ashe said as she recalled Abra to his Pokeball and scooped Pikachu up once more. Steeling herself, Ashe took of in a dead run to reach Viridian City before night fell.

XxXxXxXx

Officer Jenny had just finished making an announcement about a sighting of Pokemon thieves in the area when she spotted Ashe running down the road, yelling at the young officer for help.

"What's wrong?" Jenny asked as she spotted the little girl. She looked to young to be a Pokemon trainer and the way she was carrying the Pikachu made her think it was a pet given to her by a family member or something similar.

"We were attacked by a flock of Spearow! Pikachu's hurt badly, please help Pikachu!" the little girl was crying, and Jenny knew the faster she got the Pikachu to the Pokemon Center, the sooner she could find the girl's parents and tell them what happened.

"Get in the side car, I'll take you to the Pokemon center straight away!" Jenny started her motorcycle and shot off down the road as a red haired girl and a Meowth came into view, one glad that Ashe had gotten some help, and the other angry at the little pipsqueak that destroyed her bike.

"ARRRGHH!" the girl screamed as she picked up her charred bike again, and chased after them as Meowth noticed a rope being lowered to him. he quickly climbed up to a hot air balloon in the shape of him, causing James to smirk.

"I thought we might have to leave you out of the festivities tonight." James said as he pulled the rope back up. "Those plans aren't going to steal themselves, after all."

"The Kid is at the center right now, we need ta call it off for at least tonight and tomorrow." Meowth stated, wanting to get right to the point.

"Yes, I can see how that would be trouble. Well we should return to headquarters at any rate then."

XxXxXxXx

"How many times do I have to tell you officer, we have a perfectly good driveway you can use!" the pink haired nurse seethed at Jenny as she stared at the black scuff marks on the floor.

"No time, this girl and her pet Pikachu were attacked by the flock of Spearow that recently started nesting nearby!" The Nurse quickly realized that there was a young girl clutching tightly to a Pikachu with one hand and the hand bar of the side car with her other.

"Chansey! Emergency!" A large pink egg shaped Pokémon burst through the doors with a gurney as the Nurse knelled down next to Ashe, "Don't worry sweety, we'll take care of Pikachu. I'm Nurse Joy, the head nurse here."

Ashe nodded shakily as she handed Pikachu to the Chansey and before Joy could leave, Ashe unclasped two Pokeballs from her belt. "Please heal Abra and my Spearow too."

Jenny was stunned, wondering if the child in her side car was actually a trainer. As Joy took the two Pokeballs, Jenny helped Ashe out of the side car and sat her down in the waiting area.

"I have a couple of questions that need to be answered after move my Motorcycle. Stay in this area." Officer Jenny said as she walked away. Ashe spotted the video phones and decided to give her mom a call.

The phone rang a few times before her mom picked up, though the screen was still blank. When Delia realized it was Ashe, the screen turned on quickly. After talking for a little bit, during which Ashe told her mom about the Spearow attack and Delia had ranted about knowing that she was too young to start her journey early which lead to another argument where Delia tried to get her to come home and wait a few more years and Ashe's rebuttals were along the lines of 'I'd rather hug a Cacnea'.

After Ashe had hung up promising to call when she got to Pewter, to the annoyance of her mother, she turned around to see Jenny watching with a bemused smirk, "What did you need to ask Officer?"

"I need to see you Trainer Identification. I have no doubt that those Pokemon are yours but with out an I.D., I'm going to have to send you home and your Abra and Spearow to Oak Laboratories."

"Umm, ahh," Ashe started pulling everything out of her pockets when Jenny saw the Pokedex, and picked it up.

"Since you have a Pokedex it counts as your Trainer I.D." the older woman said as she showed Ashe what button to push to show the I.D. Screen, "Wow, so young? Professor Oak must see a lot of potential to let you start this early."

Ashe scratched the back of her head as she chuckled nervously, "Yeah he said the same thing."

"Well, I'm off. Don't worry about Pikachu, He's in good hands here." Jenny called over her shoulder as she left.

Ashe sat in the waiting room as time slowly passed. She was soon pulled out of her thoughts as a phone rung behind Joy's desk, and Ashe hurried to take it, in case it was an emergency and Joy couldn't answer it because she was helping Pikachu.

"Uh... Viridian City Pokemon Center, Ashe speaking."

"Ashley, over here!" Ashe looked up as part of the mural on the wall slid away, wondering who knew her full name. She saw the back of an old man in a lab coat and took a guess.

"Is that you Professor?"

"Of course it is, can't you recognize me?" Oak asked, sounding hurt at the thought.

"Well yeah, but not the back of your head." Oak suddenly turned around and had the decency to blush.

"Oops, wrong camera." He said as he switched cameras, "Anyways, I just finish talking with your mother, who is very peeved with you young lady, and she said you made it to Viridian City rather quickly. I hope you caught some Pokémon as well."

"Why are you saying that Professor?"

"Gary said that you wouldn't have any new Pokémon by the time you got to Viridian, and bet him a million dollars that you would." Ashe sighed at Oak's childish antics. She was suppose to be the kid here!

"Well I got and Abra and caught a Spearow if that's what you mean." Ashe replied, not hearing the Pokemon center doors open as a man walked in. The man seemed surprised that Ashe was there, like he wasn't expecting her to be behind the desk or even there at the center.

"Yes, Delia did mention something about an Abra. Anyways, put your Pokedex in the slot, even with only a few Pokemon scanned in, I want to take a look at the entries you've made." Ashe, quickly complied, not noticing the man watching her or his Persian laying down behind her, but Oak did and sent the man a very nasty look when Ashe wasn't looking. The man backed off quickly not wanting to anger the Professor and have the cops called on him like the last time the two of them had met.

"Alright, lets see here. Pikachu... interesting. So that's why it doesn't like pokeballs. Most likely my fault at any rate. Abra... he's going to be very strong. Spearow... a little above average, probably why the flock attacked as well. HO-OH! Ashe! Do you understand the implications of this scan is? You've just confirmed that Ho-oh does circle the world! Everyone thinks that it stays in Johto, but this... Ashe, you get a bonus for this entry!"

Ashe, and the man behind her, were stunned. The man gesture for the Persian to follow him as he sat down in the waiting area as Ashe stood up excitedly.

"Ashe, since you saw it and recorded evidence, it's your choice, Will you let me announce this?"

"Go ahead Professor!"

"Thank you, I need to get ready for it, it'll be on the news tomorrow. You should get some rest as well. It's nearly nine o'clock."

"W-why'd you have to say th-that?" Ashe whined trying to fight off a big yawn and failed.

Oak chuckled, "Goodnight Ashley."

"Goodnight Professor."

As Ashe hung up the doors of the Pokemon Center opened again as the red haired girl form earlier stomped in before dropping a large pile of scorched metal in the middle of the floor with a clang.

"There you are you little no good Pipsqueak!" The Girl yelled as she tried to grab Ashe by her jacket, "You owe me a bike after your Pikachu fried mine!"

With a sudden roar, the man's Persian tackled the red head and pinned her to the ground, growling as she whimpered.

"Persian, Enough."

Both looked up and saw the man that the Persian returned to as the emergency room light turned off. When the doors opened with Pikachu sitting on the stretcher, a headband with a light bulb attached to his head.

"Here you are, Ashe, your Pikachu is just fine, though he does need to go back to sleep," Nurse Joy said with a frown on her face as she looked at the Electric Mouse Pokémon, "He'll have to stay the night to make sure his electrical glands have recovered enough to start generating energy again, but you'll be able to leave in the morning."

Nurse Joy hand both Abra and Spearow to the young trainer before scowling at the mess the charred bike had left on her floor as well as the skid marks from Jenny's excessive disuse of driveways. Turning to the man she bowed slightly, "Hello Giovanni, I am happy to say that Rhydon is perfectly healthy and it was only a little joint pain from old age."

"I see, thank you Joy. He has been with me since I was fifteen after all. Perhaps' I'll retire him from battles after this season." Giovanni replied, tucking the pokeball away. Many people would think he was heartless because he ran Team Rocket, but Rhydon and Persian were the only two Pokemon he had left from his travels that had stayed with him. Ashe stared at him with wide eyes, finally recognizing him, but so did Misty.

"Miss Waterflower, why are you here? Your sisters have been making a mockery of your gym while you've been away, even Brock puts up more of a challenge than they do, and he doesn't care for battles either."

Misty stuttered, not wanting to upset the strongest Gym leader in Kanto who was reputed to be a Mafia Boss as well, "B-but my bike, I can't get there fast enough without it!"

"Here then, buy yourself a new one and hurry along," He said as he pulled out a few large bills as Persian pushed her out the door, "And I do not appreciate you threatening my only daughter."

Misty yelped when she realized that she had nearly throttled his child and ran like a pack of Houndoom were snapping at her heels. Giovanni turned and nodded to Ashe.

"I didn't expect to see you until tomorrow at earliest." He said, looking down while surveying his daughter. She looked a lot like Delia's father, with Delia's eyes and his own facial features, "I would suggest you stay here tonight. We will talk tomorrow if you want to. If not, I understand."

Giovanni walked out of the building as Persian looked back with a knowing smirk. The kitten would meet with his master. She was too curious not to, like a young Meowth that spotted something new.

XxXxXxXx

Ashe looked up at the small mansion in front of her, not knowing what to do. The estate was surrounded by a high stone wall with a wrought iron fence on top of it. The large black iron gates were unadorned and a simple two way radio was under a camera. Gathering up her courage, Ashe pressed the buzzer, waiting for a reply.

"Hello Ashley, follow Meowth and he'll show you where to go." Giovanni's voice said over the speakers as a Meowth walked up on two legs.

"Hey Kid, you should hurry up. Da Boss only has a couple of hours before he needs ta be back at da Gym." it said stunning Ashe. She followed it numbly as she tried to comprehend a non-psychic type Pokemon being able to speak, with clear concise sentences and only a slight accent! Ashe numbly followed the Scratch Cat through the gates and around the back of the mansion.

As she turned the corner, she saw Giovanni looking out over the yard, watching as several Pokemon preformed individual exercises that looked hard even for the Ground and Rock types out training. But Ashe eyed her absentee father suspiciously.

"All these Pokemon have been acquired from the wild. I have been moving Team Rocket away from the Pokemon thievery that my mother drove it into in her frantic search for Mew." Giovanni said without looking back at her, "Some of the older and more... independent operatives continue to try to steal from trainers, something that wears my patience thin."

Ashe noticed that he didn't truly disapprove of the practice but it annoyed him when he mentioned his underlings disobedience. What Ashe didn't know was Giovanni was trying to stop dealing in Pokemon stolen from Trainers, something that could easily be traced back to them for the crime, because the Pokemon themselves being several times more of a hassle than catching a wild Pokemon. To pick up the slack, he had started dealing in the act of poaching wild Pokemon instead. They were easier to handle once they were properly caught in a pokeball, and large groups of the same Pokemon generally came in at a time instead of a random assortment of Pokemon.

Giovanni had hired on several Pokemon Poachers to focus on gathering the Pokemon Team Rocket needed and made contracts with the few poachers that felt they were better off working on their own than with the organization, like the hoodlum Griff. HE was one of the best, but his sarcasm and disrespect always left a bad taste in Giovanni's mouth every time he dealt with him. While the poachers did their jobs, he began reassigning his Elites to other jobs, from the lowest rung on the Elite ladder Jessie and James were playing retrieval and scouts, to his best infiltration team Annie and Oakley were breaking into companies and labs for the required equipment. Butch and Cassidy he had reassigned to Dr. Namba, and then he had assigned Domino to keep an eye on them. Those three were the closest to being loose cannons in the organization at the moment.

"Relax, Ashley," Giovanni turned around and looked at the small tomboy, "The reason why I asked you here is to warn you about what dangers you face as my child at this exact moment."

Ashe didn't relax, she glared hard at the Mob Boss, "What do you mean by dangers?"

Giovanni sighed once more as he sat down, "I'm going to be frank with you Ashley. You probably don't like me because what I do stands against how your mother raised you. But it does not change the fact that you are my child. Team Rocket is at War."

Ashe slide down into a chair, stunned, as Pikachu looked on questioningly. Giovanni sighed, this was going to be hard to explain to a young girl, especially one Ashe's age.

"War?" Ashe stuttered.

"Yes. It started when I first wrested control of Team Rocket from my mother, a blood thirsty woman who didn't even care if her own child was nearly killed in one of her stupid Mew hunts. The other criminal organizations, such as Aqua, Magma, and Plasma, began testing our borders to try to get into Kanto and Johto. Luckily for use, Aqua and Magma fight each other at any chance they get while Plasma got locked in when Unova shut down it's borders." Giovanni scratched Persian's left ear as the Classy Cat leaned into it. Meowth watched this in jealousy, but decided to keep his trap shut. The Boss wanted him here for a reason while Jessie and James were getting ready for their new mission, and he was being temporarily split from them for a couple months.

"Recently a New team based out of Sinnoh, Team Galactic, began striking our boarders. This team is ruthless and manipulates Aqua and Magma with ease. Normally, I would assign some of my agents to guard you." Ashe glared at this, but Giovanni forestalled any yelling, "Galactic can and will kill to get what they want, and I'm on the top of that list. But I can't spare my elites to do so, and I refuse to trust your life to a bunch of grunts. Meowth will accompany you until you have someone that he can trust with your safety."

Meowth looked the young girl up and down, before nodding, "Yep, dis must be very important if ya split me from Jessie and James, Boss Man. I won't let'cha down!"

"I do hope so Meowth, as I am trusting you and your instincts to make the decision in my place."

"Don't I get a say in this!?" Ashe cried out, as Pikachu moved between Ashe and Meowth with his cheek pouches sparking. He didn't understand everything that had been said, having only been around humans for a few weeks and picking up the basics of their language, but he understood that Ashe was upset, and it made him angry.

"Think about it this way Kid. Technically Da Boss owns me. He's goin' to give you my Pokeball which my partner James normally carries and I'll be on loan to ya until we reach Cerulean City. After dat I go back ta Jessie and James, as I'm pretty sure you'll find a good travelin' partner by den." Meowth crossed his forelegs over his chest as he leaned back, knowing he did have something to offer if she kept refusing.

"But I don't want people to just keep giving me Pokemon!" Ashe shouted, causing the Pokemon in the immediate vicinity to wince, "I understand Abra was a gift, but I want to catch my own team and raise them! I don't want handouts because of who you are!"

Giovanni remained impassive as Ashe pointed at him, but Meowth was tiring of the argument when he realized it was going to deteriorate in to childishness, "Look Kid, I'm one of da few Pokemon that's capable of actual factual human speech, not dat telepathy that can cross the language boarder to be understood by all crud. Dose eggheads would want data on me. Not only dat but I can promise you that if you ever want ta use me for a battle, I'll do it as long as I'm not on an important mission for da Boss here."

Ashe looked down, knowing she wasn't going to win the argument. Pikachu nodded, knowing that it would be safer for his trainer until she gathered more Pokemon and he got stronger. Then they could kick the cat to the curb.

"Alright, I'll do it. Just until Cerulean, right?"

"Meowth! That's right!" Meowth exclaimed with a wide grin, "Hey, let your Pokemon out of deir balls, I can grab some grub for use before you leave."

Ashe hesitated, but Giovanni nodded, "I want to get to know my only daughter a little better as well while we ate lunch."

The next two hours were very informative for both father and daughter. Giovanni learned that Ashe had a few dreams she wanted to make happen. Her first one was to be the youngest trainer to win any of the Pokemon Leagues, a dream she already had a good start on. Her second goal was to establish a true elite four for Kanto with her as the Kanto Champion, as The current Elite Four, Bruno, Will, Agatha, and Lorelei, under the leadership of Champion Lance, were split between Kanto and Johto as well as covering the Orange Archipelago and the Sevii Isles. And of course, her all time dream, to be a Pokemon Master.

Ashe learned very little about her father, the few main things being he ran a mix-type Gym for the Earth Badge and that she had a half-brother that was about two years older than her, living in Johto with his Grandfather after Driving Giovanni away because of his daughter's, Silver's mother, death. Giovanni had met her own mother not long after and Delia had consoled him, but turned her back on him when his mother had tracked him down.

Spearow had tried to get nippy with Ashe when he was let out, angry over being captured. The minute he tried to bite her, he had been zapped by Pikachu, and ended up being zapped another three times before he got the message. As noon came and went, Giovanni stood up to leave, placing a pokeball on the table.

"Time's up for today, do well on your Journey." Giovanni recalled the Pokemon in the yard and left through the mansion doors. Several minutes later Ashe, Pikachu, and Meowth had left the property and were headed towards Viridian Forest, the first test on her Journey.

Meowth nodded as he saw the girl's determination, and decided to give out a few tips, "Da forest is mostly inhabited by bug-types like Weedle and Caterpie, and only Weedle's evolved forms stick around. Pidgey and Pidgeotto hang around here as well, so be ready."

Ashe nodded, before a rustling in the bushes startled them. Meowth freaked as Pikachu stood at the ready, only for a Caterpie to wiggle out of the bush, it's eyes set on Ashe. Pikachu started to charge up a Thundershock, but Caterpie whizzed past him and leapt on to Ashe, eyes twinkling.

As Caterpie nuzzled Ashe's leg and making noises that conveyed excitement, Meowth smirked, "This little Casanova is tryin' to impress ya so you would take him along."

Ashe looked down with a grin, "All he had to do was ask."

Ashe backed up a little ways and motioned for Caterpie to do the same, "Might as well do this the proper way, Pokeball, GO!"

Caterpie leapt into the air to meet the red and white ball, and disappeared into the capsule like device with a flash of red light, not even shaking to signal Caterpie was fighting the capture. Ashe grinned as she picked up the pokeball.

"Alright, I caught Caterpie!"

"Nice catch," Meowth said, nodding wisely, before his ear twitched at the sound of something in a tree nearby. Pikachu noticed as well and unleashed a Thundershock into the tree.

"Aiee!" was the noise that the thing in the tree made as it fell out of the tree and hit the ground. Ashe blinked at seeing a girl a few years older than her in a crumpled heap in front of her and had only one panicked thought.

"Meowth! Pikachu killed her! Help me hide the body!"

"I'm not dead," the girl muttered, which happened to be the wrong thing to say as she shambled to her feet.

"ZOMBIE!" Ashe screamed and shot up the tree on her own, not wanting to be eaten.

"Calm down twerp, I'm still alive, as a HUMAN!" the girl yelled as Pikachu and Meowth joined Ashe in the tree, not wanting to be near the crazed girl on the ground. "Anyways the names Enne."

Ashe looked down with a blank look on her face, and decided on what to do next.

"Prove you're not a zombie."

Enne face-faulted and grumbled through a mouth full of topsoil. Who was this little brat?

XxXxXxXx

Author's Note

XxXxXxXx

Well, this wraps up the second chapter. Writing an evil but caring Giovanni is hard to do, I don't think I quite did so here. The way I have him thinking is Silver is a boy so he can take care of himself, but Ashe is a girl and needs lots of protection. It's mostly going to be a chapter an episode, and when an episode can't fill the 4000 word minimum length for these chapters, that's when I'll improvise. Because I don't like Jessie and James that much, Meowth will be the only one that truly pops up from time to time, and even then it's going to be sparse. If you have any questions about the 'gang war' I'll try to clear those up as well.

Enne is the first of Four O.C.s that I am implementing. While Misty will come in every once in a while, Enne will replace her for places like the Viridian forest and the Safari Zone. Her main purpose though is to act as a mentor to Ashe once I get started writing contests as well, Ashe will be participating in a few for the prizes, not for the grand festival or what ever.

The other three O.C.s I have going is one that was a trainer that started the previous year out of pallet that Ashe knows well. The third one is the Pokemon Poacher Griff, mentioned above, who will be filling in several antagonist parts when it comes to Pokemon stealing. And he's a professional, even with people interfering he will get a few of the Pokemon he's after. The fourth one is a bounty hunter that travels the world an is Griff's arch nemesis.

Also since it's been such a long time, I am closing the poll with Dratini winning in a landslide. I already know where I'm working it in at as well, so thank you for those that have voted!


End file.
